Such absorbents, e.g. diapers, sanitary napkins and the like, are normally manufactured in a flat form, with an absorbent core of so-called fluff pulp encased in a casing.
Diapers and sanitary napkins may be essentially rectangular in shape, although they now have a narrow central portion, so as to conform more explicitly to the anatomy of the crotch part of the wearer.
Disposable diapers, i.e. diapers intended for one-time use only, are elasticated in order to prevent leakage around the thighs of the wearer. The most usual method of elasticating diapers is to attach pre-stretched elastic tape or thread to the diaper casing, on both sides of the absorbent pad, in the direction of the long axes of the diaper and spaced from the absorbent pad. Such a diaper is described in U.S.-A-No. 3,860,003. This elastic does not change the planar form of the absorbent pad, but merely tightens the diaper casing elastically around the thighs of the wearer. EP-A-167 931 teaches a rectangular diaper which is said to curve into a trough-like configuration when elastic is attached along the side edges of the absorbent pad, throughout substantially the whole length of the diaper. Even though the diaper can be given a curved form in this way, those parts of the diaper which lie against the skin of the wearer still remain essentially flat. Consequently, the diaper described in said European Patent Publication does not differ to any great extent from the earlier known diapers provided with longitudinally extending elastic, i.e. diapers of the kind described in U.S.-A-No. 4,050,462. Neither does the diaper produced in accordance with the European Patent Publication conform to the shape of the wearer's body.
It is important in the case of adult incontinents that the liquid-absorbing article is discrete and cannot be discerned beneath conventional garments and clothing. There is today no incontinence guard or shield which satisfactorily fulfills this desideratum, particularly in the case of women. The conventional guards incorporating cellulose absorbent pads mainly have the form of conventional diapers and are therefore bulky and clumsy when worn.
The liquid tape-up capacity of conventional sanitary napkins or towels is much too low for such napkins to be used as an incontinence guard, in addition to which such napkins are not sufficiently proof against leakage around the edges thereof when worn.
An incontinence guard must be capable of absorbing and retaining about 100 ml of liquid, and should be capable of absorbing a substantial part of this quantity at once. When large quantities of liquid are expelled momentarily, it is, of course, essential that the guard is able to retain this liquid quantity until the absorbent pad has been able to absorb all of the liquid. When using diaper-like incontinence guards that are smaller than conventional diapers, there is a serious risk that liquid will run along the guard surface facing the wearer and leak from the edges of said surface.
It has not been possible, however, with the hitherto absorbent articles that incorporate cellulose absorbent pads to combine sufficient absorption capacity, or sufficient liquid take-up capacity, with a small and discrete article.